Economy Rice Stall, Perak Road ( NH )

Heartbreaking development is slowly choking the life out of this once upon a time ,nice little enclave.

Wonder how long this old shoplot can withstand the forward march in all it's startling barenness.

Morganfield's Feast Platter, Gurney Paragon ( NH )

Hard luck trying to land a table here, if you walk in without reservations .

As opposed to a diner's corner , this place is by and by a drinker's heaven.

Very nice for slouching around on a high stool and getting hit on even .

Berlin's Bier Houz - Business Lunch ( NH )

Set lunches are a great (not to mention cheaper ) way for you to get a feel of the place first.

For $15 ++ you get a main course, choice of either a soup or a salad, plus a soft drink.

Already into week 4 , I only found out about this promo today.

Although the place looks deserted during the day, I am undeterred.

Din Ikan Bakar, Kepala Batas ( U )

This ikan bakar place is something you'll have to see for yourself because the spread is so crazy massive for such a small sleepy hollow such as this.

My pictures simply do it no justice as they're about to close for the day, thus you won't be able to spot the amazing rows of heaving grilled buffets  .

Max Gourmet,Gurney Plaza ( NH )

Take Note : This Outlet Is No Longer In Operation


Although Max Gourmet has been around for some time already, I'm trying it out for the first time today.

At first we sit outside with the crowd, but then I spy some box seats inside, so we shift inwards.

Hong Lin Restaurant ( NH )

I want to rave on and on about this restaurant

The staff here is quite friendly especially once they find out that you are Malaysian .

Shui Wah Restaurant, Fa Yuen Street

We decided to have breakfast at Shui Wah restaurant today.

The locals here seem to love eating instant noodles and ham the whole day. Paired with eggs ,toast and ham as well as other combinations later in the day.

As we were not keen on the noodles we requested for a set without it.

I got this after much difficulty getting my message across to the extremely patient and helpful waiter.

Looks like an stingray omelette in flight with two small bra cones on top .

Some swift surgery to expell the contents.....ham..ham..ham...and more ham.

Aiya, I only like french ham nothing else.

Didn't I hear him say this was a Ham Sandwich ?

Don't really like this as the bread roll is too hard, the butter or margarine is not fragrant and the egg ordinary like a flat piece of fried plastic with not much flavouring while the ham tastes like what we can get back home from supermarket delis that sell the lowest priced ham cuts.

He gets something that is not on the menu. Breaded fish fillet.
Damnit. This is really tasty and nice although very thin. Didn't try the bacon nor the tartar sauce. Stole lots of this off his plate.

Till he had to call for a second plate. This time a slight variation from the first. Eggs scrambled (that look scrambled to you ?) and with a sausage instead.

Look at the fish. Split into 2. Perhaps not enough to go around yet they obliged us anyway.

Bill time . Say what ?

Tsui Wah Restaurant , Lai Yip Street

Tsui Wah and Shui Wah are 2 different restaurants although they may sound the same.

This is another famous restaurant which I tried for the first time . I loved the food here so much I ended up patronising it every day that I was here on holiday.

As with almost every good, average priced makan place here, again, we had to line up to get in.

Nobody seems to mind the scaffolding.

See ? Packed to the brim.  Full house. Amazing how the staff fits everyone in .

Look at the amount of outlets they have scattered all over Hong Kong, Macau and China.

At first I was a bit miffed that they recommended the Malaysian curry to us.

Feeling rather haughty we went ahead and ordered the beef with rice just to see why it was a bestseller here.

The beef comprised of tender meat,brisket and tendon, while the curry was different but in a good mouthwatering way.

He tried to recall and said that it reminds him of Ayam brand chicken curry.

Frankly, it's mildly hot, builds up slowly and is worth a try at least once.

The instant I sunk my teeth into this chicken, I made up my mind to come here for a daily fix. The skin is so smooth and melt in your mouth silky, it's yellow and I could taste a hint of rock salt on top.

The dips were tasty even the thick soya sauce. The sliced vegies were sweet pickles ( I have eaten something similar in Balakong before) , the rice is fluffy while they change the soup serving everyday.

Delicious !

Bowl of sui kau dumplings. Although quite gigantic and packed with ingredients this was ok only . Didn't feel inspired enough to repeat this on the other times that we came.

He fell head over heels in love with their fishball noodle soup.

And ended up eating this each time I returned for the chicken rice.

Their rich milk tea too is the best.

A lip smacking, satisfying experience just like in the cute picture.

Bill.

Worth every cent.

Lok Yeun Chiu Chau, Soy Street

I had such high hopes. 3 years back, every restaurant on this street churned out exceptionally good food.

Today however, many have changed hands and this area where there is a junction is a huge tourist trap, mostly known for Teo Chew cuisine and typhoon shelter style clams . Still I was not dettered and went ahead into this restaurant.

We sat right in the middle of the restaurant, ignored by the surly, unfriendly, worn out staff. 

All the empty seats are soon filled up because there is some kind of happy hour promotion which we cannot make out as it is all in chinese.

We don't know that yet and proceed to happily order because we think that we have found a nice place where locals come to for good food.

As I remembered, the beef noodles on this row were excellent. Wrong !

Either, I do not know how to appreciate Teo Chew food or this is crap.

The soup is clear, the noodles tastes like boric acid, the meat is hard and the fat is capital yuck !

While the meatballs are slightly better and quite tasty , the noodles are certainly no better. Like shitty threads floating in a toilet bowl .

Red bean iced drink is also crappy. Tastes rawish, smells " chow zhang ". Yuck yuck yuck. Not nice at all.

Regret is starting to fill my head at this point .

Milk Tea.

Something I want to forget.

Then, a guy joins our table. This is acceptable. He places an order and soon kicks up a fuss. Apparently he made Happy Hour on time but the staff have listed him as arriving later than that on the bill.

They change his bill for him but not before demonstrating their displeasure by throwing cutlery into the bins in a very loud manner.

I quickly turn to face this greasy,oily cluster of condiments.

This is Mongkok after all. Who knows if you are dining amongst a fraternity of gangsters.

When it comes to our turn to pay the bill and we point out that the server has forgotten one order, the cashier gets cross with us.

Que sera sera. I don't care if I get hacked by some parang wielding Ah Fei Chai, your food sucks. No. I didn't tell her that. What ? You want me to die ?

The place and cuisine I want to avoid at all costs.

Village Coffeeshop - World's Deadliest Tomyam

When we heard another patron holler for a Pink Lady today, we followed suit.  This ended up in front of us.

Stirred the leong fun jelly, syrup, evap milk, canned sweetcorn together.

It's basically an icey cold hybrid between air bandung and a rich ice kacang drink.

Super cold,super nice refreshment for a super hot day.

The drink acts as a kind of tongue extinguisher,in case you go ahead and order the world's deadliest Tom yam served here.

Seriously, if cannot stand chillies , this is NOT advisable.

Even if you do, Village's tom yam will give you a reeducation on what HOT really means. 

The spiciness of this dish is on a pyscho scale, meant only for the suicidal.

But I still like to get a little risky and put my life on the line, every now and then.

Cooked with instant noodles, quails eggs, meatballs, mushrooms .

Of course, you can always opt for the plain soupy version with fish meat and other 'safehouse' ingredients.

Not to worry.

Most Penangites will be too busy manouvering around their volcanic bowl of death , and will turn a blind eye to your sheer cowardice.

The deep fried sandpiper is another must order here.

Good if you need to catch your breath.

As eating the Tomyam is like running like the wind away from a man eating tiger, on the edge of a jagged cliff.

Total : no more cheap nowdays. Cost us $34 for 3 bowls of noodles and 4 small sandpipers. Not inclusive of drinks

Location : Weld Quay

Chowtime : Lunch to 10pm

Directions : Turn left from the ferry terminal, go straight.  Towards the end of the clan jetty area, keep a lookout on your left for a green signboard.

Sin Lean Heang, Block 360

It's not that easy locating Sin Lean Heang at first try as every block of flat looks almost the same. But it's certainly worth the effort when you finally find it.

We don't come here often as waiting time is excrutiating. But when we do have the time, we always order the Fried Glass Noodles .

This is the best, that you can find up here in the north. Nobody cooks this better than them.

An extravagant dish cooked with fish meat, oysters, sawi, egg white, prawn and pork. Such a lipsmacking experience.

Their most famous dish is the very humble Taukwa with leeks. They have elevated it to another level altogether which nobody can immitate.

You will be rather surprised to discover that the tofu is soft rather than hard, very fragrant, with equally delicious garlicky sauce and the leeks do not have that strong smell associated to stir fried leeks.

Real Ho Liau dish that should never be underestimated.

Oyster Mee or Oh Mee is up next.

Oh my god, I Love this so much I would drink up all the sauce if no one were watching.

This is the average size of the fresh juicy local oysters that goes into every noodle based dish here. Bursting point !

Location :  Gat Lebuh Macallum

Directions : coming out from the ferry terminal , turn left, follow the road till you see a road sign that says Harbour Trade Centre. Turn left at the traffic light immediately after that sign, pass by a D'Orient Mall on your left. When you come to the end of the block, turn right. Continue straight to the end, to the last block of flats. When you see Star City Foodcourt start looking for parking. Best to walk into the flat area.

Chowtime : Lunch till around 4pm

Contact : 04-262 6954

( NH ) Hokkien Mee, Lebuh Cecil

What I love most about Lebuh Cecil wetmarket, is the adjoining hawker centre, where prices of hawker fare is still so incredibly low.

My favourite Hokkien Mee stall is this one.

A short step away, in front of a Malaysian flag hung up on the roof. Nearest to the two red lanterns. Next to a small yellow telco booth.

( U ) Satay Ah' Basri - Bayan Lepas

I have to say I was a bit apprehensive before stepping into this satay outlet.

From the outside it looked like a cafe but once inside it resembled a fast food outlet .

Oh oh.

On top of that, it was also clean, brightly lit,with sweet, well mannered staff....hmmm.... I was truly prepared for the worst.

( NH ) Keat Duck Rice, Fettes Park

Update : I've found them again .
They were the couple that was pictured inside the viral picture in the surau after the floods .
 They are now operating from a corner kopitiam also in Fettes Park just 3 or 4 shops away from their old premises .
Open during lunch , you can find this couple in the back of that shop .
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To me, this is the best chicken rice shop in Penang.

The irony is, he sells more chicken,char siew and siew yoke, than duck, although the shop name denotes otherwise.

But that doesn't mean that his duck isn't good.

It is. The skin is crispy. The meat most delicious.

 Just that Penangites prefer to see more ducks hanging not just 1 or 2 .

More as in 20 ducks hanging before taking your duck rice claim very seriously.

But who cares which is the best seller, when what they serve here is so good, they even get Mat Sallehs as regular customers.

Summer Garden Food & Bistro, Vale of Tempe (NH)

What makes this restaurant so arresting and stand out from all the rest, is this cascading wall of water at the entrance.

While the inside is no less elegant as it is cozy.

View from the wine bar.

Nando's Cataplana feast, Gurney Plaza ( PF )

Penangites have fallen hopelessly in love with this Portuguese chicken franchise from day one.

Us included.

 We want to try out their signature dish, served in this very cute but strange looking copper/brass like container.

( NH )_Look Yuen Restaurant, Bukit Mertajam

This is the famous Look Yuen.

It's located just next to a busy highway